Ethical and legal considerations in normothermic regional perfusion for donation after circulatory death

This study aims to examine the ethical and legal discourse surrounding normothermic regional perfusion (NRP) for donation after circulatory death (DCD).

NRP is well established within Europe but faces challenges in the US and is not utilized in a variety of other countries. NRP compliance with the dead donor rule (DDR) and Uniform Declaration of Death Act (UDDA) is the most significant recently addressed US ethical and legal issue. Additionally, NRP procedures raise concerns regarding public education, informed consent, public engagement, and trust. Inconsistent NRP regulation - such as in the US- is a cause for concern with the anticipated increase in NRP frequency in support of organ recovery and transplantation. There is no single repository for NRP technical and outcome data to support practice refinement - a key aspect given practice variation between centers and countries.

NRP-based organ recovery presents ethical and legal challenges to be addressed by organ donation and transplantation clinicians and organizations in conjunction with public representatives. Additional inquiry into the determination of donor circulatory death, family information needs for authorization, and coordinated regulation of NRP practice is needed to ensure that ethical and legal concerns are appropriately addressed. Public engagement is essential to bolster and preserve trust.